All eyes will be on Ferrari and Vettel in Shanghai this Sunday
It's time for the Chinese Grand Prix this weekend.
I HAVE just come back from seven exciting days in England where I learnt more about the state of the game, including some of the latest developments on the cars, and also how the new chimneys extract hot air in a cool way on the new Mercedes, plus some of the secrets of Ferrari’s new found speed.
It’s off to Shanghai this weekend for the second round of Grand Prix 2017.
This time I think we will get an even better idea of true form for the season which the Australian race, on its own, was unable to give us.
Overtaking is paramount in formula one and the China race will tell us the new state of play in this department.
Melbourne was different and can almost be regarded as a one-off race from this point of view.
In China we will learn to understand the new challenge of overtaking by the new higher down-force cars a lot better as Shanghai has two high-speed straights where overtaking is possible.
He who does this well will win on Sunday.
Mercedes have come out saying that overtaking has now become a highly skilled courageous manoeuvre.
YOU MIGHT ALSO BE INTERESTED IN : Track Torque: Hamilton victorious … and a look ahead to Le Mans
It is a case of fabulous footwork and split-second decision making between brakes, power and pressure.
Enough said, we shall see whether it is Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Raikkonen or Valtteri Bottas in the top four.
Maybe this is actually where Max Verstappen or Daniel Ricciardo will score? I think we are in for a hell of a race in the heat of the huge city.
China will also tell us more about reliability of the cars as most have to endure another very hot, high-speed challenge with, in most cases, the same engine and gearbox from the last race.
Outsiders for the top six, or even the podium, could possibly include Felipe Massa in his Williams or one of the Toro Rosso twins, Russian Daniil Kvyat or Frenchman Carlos Sainz Junior.
Nico Hulkenberg, in his Force India Mercedes, could also come into the reckoning.
Qualifying should be at 7am on Saturday and the race will start on Sunday at 8am sharp!
HAVE YOUR SAY
Like our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram
For news straight to your phone, add us on BBM 58F3D7A7 or WhatsApp 082 421 6033
